Indiana Pacers advisor Donnie Walsh talks with general manager Kevin Pritchard,right, as the Pacers warm up before their game against the Toronto Raptors Tuesday, April 4, 2016, evening at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.(Photo: Matt Kryger/IndyStar)

INDIANAPOLIS — As they finalize their plans, the Indiana Pacers understand what it will take for their first-round selection in Thursday’s draft to be considered a success for years to come. They need help.

Last week, an executive in the team’s front office said the Pacers need other teams ahead of them to “(expletive) up” for the Pacers' selection with the 18th pick to have an immediate and significant impact on the franchise.

The Pacers have several needs entering the draft – they need to get younger, they need better perimeter shooting and they need frontcourt players who are more mobile. The franchise could begin its latest rebuilding effort Thursday, too. Several teams in the NBA are engaging the Pacers in trade talks to acquire Paul George, the four-time All-Star who doesn’t plan to re-sign with the franchise when he becomes a free agent next summer.

Everyone in the Pacers’ front office knows how the team has remained competitive, how it has been one of the most consistent teams in the Eastern Conference, how trips to the postseason are an expectation, how they develop star players and how they must make the most of this pivotal moment – through the draft.

The Pacers are hoping perennial lottery teams — such as the Sacramento Kings (picking fifth and 10th) and the New York Knicks (eighth) — will extend their track record of disappointing selections.

“When we drafted (Danny) Granger (in 2005), that’s exactly what happened,” said Ryan Carr, the Pacers’ director of scouting, of taking Granger 17th after players such as Fran Vazquez and Yaroslav Korolev were selected. “I would love for the sixth- or seventh-ranked guy on our draft board to still be there at 18. You just won’t know that Thursday until the night plays out."

Carr, in a phone interview Tuesday, said the Pacers felt that Granger was the fifth- or sixth-best prospect they evaluated at the time of that draft. Granger went on to play nine seasons for the Pacers, was an All-Star in 2009 and a contributor to the team making its rise toward consecutive Eastern Conference finals in 2012-13. Only Chris Paul and Deron Williams have had better NBA careers from the first 17 picks in that draft.

The Pacers are eager to see if they can select a prospect Thursday with similar impact. Carr believes it’s possible. He agrees with draft analysts who have projected this year’s prospects to be one of the most talented groups in the past decade.

Carr said the talent tier that the Pacers selected from when they choose Myles Turner with the 11th pick in the 2015 draft is similar to where they are picking this year.

“We would all be doing backflips if we got somebody like Myles again, that’s for sure,” Carr said. “What’s interesting is that year with that pick and this year with this pick, this is a talented enough group that you’re still dealing with a lot of freshmen guys that are the same kind of upside guys as we took with Myles. You hope they would progress as quickly as Myles, but when you’re dealing with these kids in the draft you’re doing it with a longer view, thinking of three to four years.”

Indiana Pacers head coach Nate McMillan,right, watches the six college players work out. The Indiana Pacers held another pre draft workout for several possible NBA draft pick at Monday, June 5, 2017, afternoon at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.(Photo: Matt Kryger/IndyStar)

Last year, the Pacers traded the 20th pick to the Brooklyn Nets to acquire Thaddeus Young, a veteran forward, to help compete in the Eastern Conference. Carr said it’s a possibility that new team president Kevin Pritchard could execute a trade Thursday night that allows the Pacers to move up in the draft if the team targets a prospect that is still available.

Such a move could signal the Pacers’ transition from George to a younger core built around Turner and the selected prospect.

“If Kevin feels like whatever could get us there doesn’t come at too high of a cost, then you could definitely see that happening,” Carr said of trading to move up in the first round.

The biggest difference in the Pacers’ front office from a year ago is who will make the final decision on which prospect the team selects. Pritchard, who took over for Larry Bird in May, will select the prospect with help from Carr, vice president Peter Dinwiddie and advisor Donnie Walsh. Carr also expects Bird to be in the draft room inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse Thursday night to give his insight to Pritchard.

Bird, who used to have the final say, helped Pritchard and Carr evaluate the large number of draft prospects at the NBA combine last month. Bird has also attended every predraft workout that the Pacers had leading up to the draft.

“He’s using Larry as a resource, and how would you not,” Carr said of Pritchard. He added of Bird: “He’s going to voice what he thinks, too, but Kevin’s making the call.”

Unlike last year's predraft process, Carr said the Pacers were able to evaluate each prospect they thought could be available at the 18th pick in person, either at their arena or during a pro day. Similar to the drafts in 2005 and 2015, Carr is confident the Pacers can succeed yet again in the draft.

“The last piece of the puzzle really for us,” Carr said, “is trying to figure out what the teams ahead of us are going to do.”